Despite predictions of printing’s doom, The Daily app failed to find a “large enough” audience as Murdoch closes the short-lived journal.
Rupert Murdoch, 
Chairman of News Corp, has announced the closure of its digital newspaper app The Daily citing a failure to reach a large enough audience, with a closure date expected to be issued soon, reports PrintWeek.
Describing The Daily as a bold experiment in digital publishing, Murdoch stated that “we will take the very best of what we have learned at The Daily and apply it to all our properties”.
The Daily Editor-in-Chief Jesse Angelo will become publisher at The New York Post and The Daily Publisher Greg Clayman will preside over News Corp’s digital strategy.
Murdoch continued: “Under the editorial leadership of Editor-in-Chief Col Allan and the business and digital leadership of Jesse, I know The New York Post will continue to grow and become stronger on the web, on mobile, and not least, the paper itself.”
News Corp is said to have invested $30 million (€22.9 million) in The Daily’s launch in February 2011. An announcement was made in July 2012 that it would cut 50 of its 170 employees.
The announcement of small readership is of interest considering widespread reports of the continuing decline of the print industry. While upcoming technologies have often been attributed with the downturn, it is curious to note that there yet appears to be a direct replacement for traditional print-based media and, on a smaller scale, The Recycler is reminded of Michael Harrison’s comments regarding the conjunction between technology and printing: “We have been sharing photos for years through the likes of Facebook and MySpace […] Regardless of this, there will always be a need and desire for printing hardcopy photos and documents.”